TorreDelAguila wrote: half the country voted not to leave the EU.51.9 to 48.1 . .

Being pedantic only 72.2% of the country voted so that equates to only 37.5% of the country voting to leave.So, roughly speaking, one third said leave, one third said stay and one third didn't care.Still more voted to leave than to stay.CheersGerry

No self-respecting parish council, knitting circle, angling society or golf club would restructure itself on the basis of a vote which resulted in an almost 50-50 split. Constitutional matters - even for quite modest associations - invariably have requirements for quorums, procedures and "decisive outcomes" (majorities) before drastic change is adopted.

Why this respected way of working wasn't adopted (a) by D.Cameron, and (b) by T.May is up for discussion, but you'd have to ask them why they did it. Not that you'd get a straight answer, of course.

"Must include an option to remain in the E U" can this statement be classed as an oxymoron ?? Brexit is here to stay and I can't wait for it, I'm sick and tired of being told by unelected trough dwellers who want to dictate to me and my "genuine" fellow countrymen how many immigrants we should take, etc, etc, etc.Believe me when we do finally exit, Britain will become respected again and the pound will go through the roof !!

Just to put the record straight, no legislation from the EU gets passed into law by "unelected" individuals.

EU civil servants compile information and draw up proposals for regulations, laws, standards (just like the in the UK).These draft proposals are then passed to the EU Parliament, where they are debated by elected representatives - the MEPs (just like the UK).MEPs are elected by you. Maybe you didn't vote.When new legislation has been agreed by a vote amongst MEPs, it becomes law (just like the UK).Britain has agreed, like all member states, to take EU legislation into UK law, unless an 'exemption' has been agreed, and it doesn't apply to the UK.

All this is called democracy. Nothing becomes law unless it is approved by parliament (EU or Westminster).At both Westminster and Brussels/Strasbourg, the parliaments are elected.If you didn't take part in electing these representatives, that was your decision.Whether you voted or not, those representatives are certainly not "unelected".

The Civil Servants, on whom the elected representatives partly depend (just as in the UK), are not elected. They are appointed on their professional merits . . . just like the UK.

Good speech and response to question today by TM at the Munich safety and security conference .

It might just be that Europe can continue to jointly contribute to security and defence after Brexit. Wouldnt it be nice if a similar none political solution could apply to trade without the four pillars and ECJ showingup?

It never ceases to amaze me about those brits who live in Spain and bang on about how they are sick and fed up of being told what to do by the Eu and how they cant wait for brexit..the sooner the better...So i assume that when it all finaly happens they will all be rushing back toBlighty!!

For Manchesteral's benefit : " Who elected Juncker ? " - Elected members of the European Parliament ( MEPs ).

Who elected those MEPs ? - The electorates of EU member countries, in the same way as they elect Members of their domestic Parliaments, at the ballot box. So I suppose you could say that Farage, for example, was among the body who elected Juncker.